The Ghost Compendium
by PhantomOfAWriter
Summary: A field guide of sorts to ghosts and an attempt to dispel myths, as written by the Ghost Writer.
1. Foreword

To many humans, there is a lot of information on ghosts. It is often misinformation or missing key details. For example, a ghost can interact with objects in the environment, not just speak and change the temperature. This ability is not limited to poltergeists. Many ghosts avoid doing so, because they'd rather not frighten humans more.

The ghosts that are more... obvious, for lack of a better term, either do not care about humans' fright of them and lack tact, or they really do wish to cause fear. This pattern reinforces itself. The more most of us hide from humans, the more humans consider all ghosts malicious because that is almost always what they see. When there are exceptions, it is then assumed that the ghost is planning something in the long term or trying to lure humans into a false sense of security. That mistreatment that comes with that assumption then taxes the nerves of those exceptions and, if attacked, they will strike back in defense. But defending oneself is seen as confirming malevolent intent. Hell, I've seen a few ghosts who do not strike back even in those circumstances and they are still maligned!

This misinformation is dangerous. What happens is that humans often attack the wrong target. They see all ghosts as equally dangerous or malicious when that's simply untrue. Some wish only to be left alone. Others are kind until they are attacked. Others try to do good in spite of their mistreatment by humans, usually because they haven't accepted their death or still have a sense of camaraderie with humans in spite of being outcast. Some are outright malevolent.

But many humans, ghost hunters especially, do not make this distinction. They focus solely on power, not intent. That is disastrous. Instead of having a possible ally, now they may have made an enemy with one of the former categories, ghosts who simply don't mean harm on anyone unless necessary.

Within these pages is a discussion of both ghosts as a whole and various individual ghosts. Attempting to treat ghosts as all interchangeable in personality, actions, and morals solely because of method of existence is rather nasty in implications. Admittedly, there are humans and ghosts alike who already think that of their fellows, but they're rightfully despised by their fellows for being so hateful.

I set out writing this after a discussion with another ghost about dealing with humans and ghost hunters. The intention here is so that humans do not instantly panic and react with extreme prejudice. Much like humans, ghosts vary in morals, temperaments, and actions. To act as though we are all evil or incapable of conscious thought would be akin to humans of the past having acted so to other humans. It is a grievous mistake, born of hatred, ignorance, and fear.

I am writing this now under a false name, the name I use when dealing with my fellow ghosts, so that I do not get blacklisted in the human publishing industry. I have published books before under various pen names and I would like to continue doing so.

Sincerely,  
>The Ghost Writer<p>

((Note: I am also a Ghost Writer RPer on Tumblr, thus this idea originated from that and the original version is posted there. There are some edits in this version.))


	2. General Information

Most ghosts are formed because they were a human who died. I say most because there are a few exceptions, such as Clockwork. Spirits like him, though ghostly, cannot be accurately categorized as being the dead. They were never living in a human sense of the word, though they would be considered living to a more ghostly conception of life.

To make things more complicated, much like humans, ghosts can sexually reproduce. The products of such unions were never alive as humans either, so they cannot accurately be called a human who died and came back, which is the general conception of ghosts.

As a rule, do not ask ghosts about their deaths. It is rude and generally taken badly.

Humans rarely see the ghosts who were never alive as humans to begin with. Clockwork has much more pressing matters to attend to and ghostly children of that nature are kept in the Ghost Zone by their parents. The parents know humans will hunt down their children without a care that they池e going to kill a child because, in human eyes, those children aren't really alive and don't have rights in the slightest.

Ghosts are associated with ectoplasm for good reason. Ectoplasm is for ghosts what water, food, and blood are for humans. It is necessary for our survival and forms a key part of us. Mind, we can eat and drink from human sources, but without ectoplasm mixed into it, we gain no nutritional value and cannot properly digest it.

Ghosts do need sleep and to rest. It performs many of the same functions that it does for humans- organizing memory, repairing one's body, and so on. Ghosts can become exhausted, be it from physical exertion or staying up far too long in a given span. I've done that before both as a human and as a ghost. It is not a good idea to stay up for a week straight.

Despite the impression some humans have, ghosts do not merely mimic emotions. We have emotions and we can feel pain. Our emotional states are similar to humans- we can love, we can hate, we can feel joy, mourn, hope, and so on. If we are struck or injured, it will hurt.

Ghosts as a whole are sentient beings. We can reason, though our reason can sometimes be clouded by emotions like humans. We can think. We can anticipate, we can make moral choices, and we have stable personality traits, hobbies, interests, and can communicate. We can form friendships, alliances, vendettas, and other such things with each other and with humans.

Ghosts have basic powers, such as the ability to fly, the ability to go intangible, and the ability to turn invisible. These are all very useful when going about one's business, because humans seeing us or running into us tend to kick up a fuss. Along with that, some ghosts have special abilities that are rarer. Some have the ability to manipulate ice, others can manipulate electricity and technology, granting wishes, telekinesis related to a particular subject, and so on. This is on a case by case basis.

Some ghosts can possess humans, though it's sometimes called 'overshadowing' by ghosts. The use for this varies from ghost to ghost. Some never use the ability, while others are callous about it. Some ghosts do so to be incognito and avoid being shot. Others do so to harm others or for personal gains. Again, I must stress the importance of it being on a case by case basis. There are legitimate uses for it, but whether or not it's used properly depends on the restraint and morals of the ghost.

Regarding spirit summonings and Ouija boards, I advise against them. Such things often takes the nearest wandering spirit for it and you don't know what you could be summoning. You could be summoning anything from the benign to the malign. And, even then, if things go wrong, even the nicer spirits could turn on you for inflicting various harms. If performed incorrectly, a summons is akin to having bones broken to the point of them sticking out of one's skin. And, if the end of the summons is incorrect, you could be trapped for years in a living hell in the board, unable to escape.

When I was newly dead, I had been passing through an area when I was trapped in an Ouija board. Because they didn't know what they were doing, I wasn't released when they were done and I was trapped in that board for several years. Imagine for a moment a hell in which you are slowly starving, bound to a board that has not seen use for quite a while hidden in some closet or attic, being alone with your thoughts for years, while possibly being injured because they didn't summon you properly.

Even the nicest ghosts will turn on whoever does that to them. And, considering the position they were put in, who could blame them? Being trapped like that constitutes a form of torture and they are going to be very angry with whoever caused it.

Do not summon spirits unless you know for sure what you are doing, that you can free them, and you really will free them. Not heeding this warning will bite you in the ass in the long term, as ghosts will attack those responsible.


	3. Clockwork

I've mentioned him repeatedly before. He is a ghost that was not initially a human who then died and came back. He has existed longer than any of us can comprehend. Also bear in mind that he is **benevolent**.

He has a scar across his left eye, a portion of his abdomen looks like clock parts, he wears a purple tunic and numerous watches, and he shifts between chronological ages. He can appear as a very young child or infant, an adult, and an elderly man and often shifts forms during conversation. The first is likely where the concept of a baby representing a new year came from. The last is probably where the conception of 'father time' as an old man with a beard came from. He also often wields a staff.

He ensures the timelines all work properly and avoid extremely negative futures, relatively speaking. From what I can tell, his interference prevents the complete destruction of either world, but he isn't allowed to act unless his lack of interfering would allow such an outcome. Even then, his interference is much more indirect most of the time, from what I have heard.

He is protective of both humans and us ghosts who aren't malicious, so attacking him would be in anathema to any goals ghost hunters usually claim to have. He protects humans, after all. Unfortunately, some of them are really that xenophobic (phasmophobic?), that they'd attack a protector of humans because he is a ghost and also protects ghosts that do not mean harm.

If you see him, **do not shoot at him**. When he appears, he is often trying to help prevent or stop something extremely bad. Even if it's so unlikely that you'll harm him, it's still something extra that he must deal with when he is already dealing with the whole of time's safety. If you are that stupid or that cocky to attack, attacking him is at your own peril, as his title is 'Master of Time' for a reason.

I've met him occasionally, sometimes because he wishes to browse through books, as my residence is also a library of sorts. He also enjoys chatting with those of us who aren't violent.

In that sense, he has foresight, if you pardon the pun. Unlike the Observants, who are his higher-ups, he knows he must remain grounded. That is to say, he must be able to understand others' perspectives and show them compassion and what humans often call 'humanity.' He knows that the only way to do so is to care about those around him, so he makes friends and allies of certain humans and of more amiable ghosts. The Observants are another story entirely and will be discussed in a different section.

He also possesses several medallions that are tied into his power, meant for people other than himself. I do not know much about them, only that they are emblazoned with a stylized CW for his initials and that they are powerful enough that many ghosts cannot alter them, nor can they destroy them.


End file.
